The Old Willis Place: A Ghost Story

In The Old Willis Place, the gate at the edge of Oak Hill Manor’s property is a symbol for Diana, Georgie, and Miss Lilian’s entrapment. It is a physical representation of the rules that limit them and a constant reminder of the world beyond—just out of reach.

The front gate is introduced in Chapter 1 when Diana and Georgie plot to “borrow” Lissa’s bike. Georgie contemplates riding away on the bike, saying he would go for “[m]iles and miles, on and on and on—” (6). Diana interrupts him, saying “Yes, all the way to the gate and back” (6), this being one of their important personal rules. When Diana takes her turn on the bike, she stops at the gate and looks out: “Beyond [is] the road—and the rest of the world” (17). The world beyond the gate reminds Diana and Georgie of everything they will never know or experience.

The gate is also mentioned alongside a recurring motif: Lassie Come Home. In Chapter 4, when Diana and Georgie peruse Lissa’s copy of the book, one of the pictures features “Lassie, sitting at the gate, waiting for her boy, Joe” (33). Just as Lassie waits at a gate, so do Diana and Georgie, as if someone might rescue them.